Category Archives: Media Coverage

As a leading organization at the intersection of religion, sexuality, gender, and reproductive health, the Religious Institute’s work receives regular coverage in both national and local media. Below you will find some of the most recent media coverage of the Religious Institute.For press inquiries or further information about the Religious Institute, contact Drew Konow at 203-222-0055 or konow@religiousinstitute.org. Please click here to join the Religious Institute Press List.

Major religious groups, as well as nearly 1,300 individual Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders, signed on to briefs filed Monday with the Supreme Court, arguing that religious business owners should be required to serve same-sex couples. In this piece, Rev. Marie Alford-Harkey shares why faith communities are engaged with this case.

“Not only are abstinence-only-until-marriage sexuality education programs ineffective, as this research shows, but they also violate the religious value of honesty, the moral agency of young people, and the dignity of worth of all people,” said Rev. Marie Alford-Harkey. “These programs do a disservice to our communities by propping up one narrow religious view of […]

Hundreds of People of Faith Express Support for ACA, Medicaid Expansion, and Planned Parenthood; Hand Deliver Statement to Key Legislative Leaders as Clergy Gather at U.S. Capitol for Prayer and Public Witness

Kentina Washington-Leapheart participated in a roundtable discussion at Christiana Care about LGBTQ Pride Month. Kentina Washington-Leapheart noted that individuals are multifaceted beyond their sexuality. “I’m not just an LGBTQ person. I am a woman of color, a mother, a minister,” she said. “I am not going to debate my humanity. I am human. I exist.”

The protest signs were blunt and without corporate logos. It was it was exactly the kind of worship I needed, and I turned to my friend with eyes brimming and said, “April and I are doing this next year!”

“The call for opposition was made via a letter coordinated by the Religious Institute and signed by more than 100 national religious leaders from across the country, and hand-delivered to legislative offices today with another letter signed by more than 200 Texas-based faith leaders. Texas clergy also gathered outside of the House chamber to pray and to take their message opposing discrimination directly to legislators.”

Approximately 1 in 5 women rely on Planned Parenthood for health care. Each year, Planned Parenthood serves 2.5 million people. Nearly half of Planned Parenthood’s patients are people of color, and many live in rural areas.

Communities of faith are not yet as universally inclusive as they should be pursuant to their own teachings about human dignity, love, and protection for the vulnerable. But there is hope in increasingly affirming denominations, and people of faith are becoming more and more vocal in support of transgender justice. Events such as the National Weekend of […]